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Three Governors in this Race: One Real Choice; Rick Perry

Look this is getting down to the wire in Iowa and the voting will start soon. As a small government conservative I have to really make sure I make the right choice when I pull the lever or check the box. I hope others will think as hard as I’ve have, and here is my argument for my preferred candidate.

Even from the perspective of a liberal President Obama has not gotten the job done, and much of the reason for this probably sides on the fact that he was a legislator before he became president, instead of an executive of some kind; that and even though he has tried to appear like he has been a partisan free president, the truth is not so clear, it appears that he has been as obdurate as any president in recent history.

The closest thing I can think of as training for the job of president is the state governor. The American governorship is a historically weak position with limited power, but they do have about the same amount as the president when compared to the legislature.

Here are a list of some of the duties a governor have, and see if you can see the making of a good president in there.

· Directing policy: which is something the president does, and he/she is good at it then it becomes the policy of the country.

· Marshaling legislative action: here is when the governor gets to try to influence the agenda of the legislature, if the person is good at it they will even bring some in the opposing party along with them. Obama seems to have failed at this.

· Administering the executive branch: as chief executive of the state the governor is in charge of numerous agencies, departments, boards, and commissions. This is a task the president has just on a grander schedule.

· Serving as master of ceremonies: the governor like the president as to spend a lot of time on ceremony type activities; these include stuff like cutting ribbons for new highways and welcoming new businesses to the state.

· Coordinating intergovernmental relations: Governors serve as the major point of contact between their states and the president, Congress, and the numerous national agencies; this is a lot like what the president has to do when they have contact with foreign nations.

· Promoting economic development: as the promoter of economic development a governor works to bring business into the state, promote tourism, and encourage economic growth from sources within the state; this can sometimes even lead the governor to other countries to promote their states business climate. This is something I feel has been lacking in the Obama presidency, he has not be as focused as he should have on making the climate of the nation as a whole more friendly to economic growth. Rick Perry has shined in this role for the state of Texas.

· Leading a Political Party: when a governor wins the election he then becomes the leader of his party in the state, or at least the highest ranking member. This used to be more pronounced when the party convention picked things like the nominations in the state legislature and the executive branch offices, but it still has an impact through campaign aid, endorsements, and a few other things. If a governor endorses a state legislator and they win they will likely feel indebted to that governor which would help pass their agenda.

So it makes good sense for the country to like electing governors as presidents, the jobs description is very similar.

We have three governors in this race and if the Republican Party wants to beat president Obama next year the best thing to do would be to pick one of them.

Mitt Romney was not a successful governor from a conservative perspective, and he has developed the reputation of a moderate. He has worked in the past as an investment banker in which these types have angered citizens on both sides of the political divide. Romney is not offering any real change from the last 11 years, and let’s remember the nation was not to fond of the George W. Bush presidency towards the end either, it would not be hard to paint Romney as more of the same East coast elite Republican who only cares for big business and Republican big government.

John Huntsman has a wonderful record as governor of the state of Utah, and his plan is quietly conservative. The problem I think he as is twofold, one is now that he is trying to paint himself as the consistent conservative he will have to explain his former positions on things like climate change; he has not been consistent on issues that matter to conservatives.

Second I believe like Bush, Huntsman wants to be liked by the other side. I am not convinced he is willing to fight for conservative principles. He also has the whole growing up silver spoon fed problem Mitt Romney has. I am not sure how well having super wealthy candidates will play in an election cycle that will clearly be about economic problems. I have no issue with rich people, but I am not so sure about the middle of the political divide; but his weaknesses are nowhere near as prominent as Romney’s.

Out of the three I think Rick Perry would not only be the most conservative or best president, he would also be the one most likely to win against Obama. I understand what the polls say, but in reality they mean little when it comes to the general election. The Republican Party would get behind a Perry nomination with extreme fervor if he was to win the nomination; and as the governor of the state that is leading in job creation one has to expect that it would not be hard to argue Perry has the economic credentials to get the job done.

The people of this wonderful nation are growing sick of the federal government, and they are looking for a reason to believe conservatives when we say we are also sick of the status quo. This is where Rick Perry’s message of devolution will start to resonate. Perry is an adamant Tenth Amendment supporter, and as the federal government has taken more and more power away from the states I believe that many people are also becoming more inclined to trust their state politicians over the federal government.

Right now the establishment media wants a Romney nomination, and because of that the talk about bringing the power back to the states has not really resonated beyond the Republican voter who pays attention closely, but if Perry was to become the nominee, then the Republican establishment would have to get behind it and it would really start to become a powerful rallying cry for the American electorate that is crying for real change. Even those who are not conservative could find reason to get behind a candidate that is promising them a greater force in their own states governmental affairs.

The delegation of power and programs from the federal government back to the states would not only be a powerful rebuttal to president Obama expansion of the federal government, it would also have the effect of dealing with those who mulct the federal coffers with their earmarks and tax payer scams.

This would also work well with Perry’s plan to overhaul and uproot Washington. Let’s remember, it will be a lot easier to sell a part time congress when much of their legislative responsibilities would have been delegated back to the states where they belong. The state could decide if they would want to use different initiatives or recalls to make sure the people truly have a powerful voice.

It would be very hard for president Obama and the Democrats to argue that Perry is just more of George W. Bush’s policies when his plan is so drastically different than anything Bush ever did or even tried to do.

The last added benefit from this would be that I do not believe the Republican Party would have to worry about a negative coattail effect with a Perry nomination, those Tea Party candidates can run on the fact that if they get reelected then they will finally have a President that understands that the federal government is inimical to prosperity, and it time to ride a movement back to state centered power bases around the country. We will lay the responsibility for all of Americans economic problems on the federal government where it belongs.

I truly believe that the American voters will get behind this in a huge way, the only thing that has to happen is for conservatives to get behind Rick Perry and hand Mitt Romney is 18th election loss, and then hand President Obama his second.